RECOMMENDATIONS 279
recommendations 280 national roles In accordance with SD 600, 1 each unit director, using the unit s collections management policy and collecting plan, shall have responsibility for defining the unit s national collection role, within the Institution s national collection roles. As situations require, Smithsonian senior management (Deputy Secretary, Under Secretaries, and directors of collecting units) will interpret SD 600 for additional guidance, consistent with accreditation and professional standards. The following questions may apply: The meaning of national with respect to the unit s collections. For example, what is the unit s national collecting role? What cultural, artistic, natural, and other evidence should it protect for future generations? What is its responsibility for collecting rapidly vanishing species and for collections orphaned by other US collecting units? What is its context with relation to other similar or complementary collecting entities? The relative priority of collections and their management with respect to other unit major programs and activities. 1 The term SD 600 is used to include Smithsonian Directive 600 and its companion SD 600 Implementation Manual.
recommendations 281 use and access Smithsonian senior management (Deputy Secretary, Under Secretaries, and directors of collecting units) shall: Establish a Smithsonian-wide policy for electronic access to collections information consistent with SD 600. Assign responsibility to OCIO to develop a central portal for access to collections information across Smithsonian collecting units. Develop related goals, objectives, and performance measures, and incorporate them into the Smithsonian strategic and annual performance plans. Each collecting unit shall establish, within the framework of central policy on digitization and electronic access, a unit collections digitization plan, based on uses and users. The plan shall include priorities, guidance on the information content appropriate to different users, goals and objectives for electronic access, targets for digitization, and a timeline for implementation. The plan shall be consistent with the unit strategic plan and with SD 600. The Smithsonian shall foster collaboration on electronic access, internally and externally. Specific priorities include: Creation of a single Smithsonian portal to facilitate searches across all Smithsonian collections databases.
recommendations 282 Participation in cooperative arrangements with consortia and interagency forums such as biodiversity networks. Linkages with external databases and participation in portals that connect the Smithsonian and external organizations. collections care The Smithsonian shall implement minimum standards for inventories, profiling, and significance assessments in SD 600, to serve as a framework for the development of unit-specific standards. To ensure preservation of its collections, each unit shall, in accordance with the minimum Smithsonian standards established for each task: Establish and implement an inventory process and written cyclical inventory plan appropriate to the character and size of the unit s collections. Profile its collections, and prepare an action plan to address deficiencies and to prevent their recurrence. Conduct a significance assessment of its collections and categorize collections by level of significance with respect to appropriate parameters, such as the unit s purpose, mission, and programs, its users, and the ability of collections to support its interpretative goals.
recommendations 283 acquisition and disposal Each unit shall develop a long-term collecting plan that provides a framework for making acquisition and disposal decisions. The collecting plan shall: Flow from the unit s mission and strategic plan. Be practical, operational, and aligned with resources. Be based on comprehensive collections information, including inventory, profiling, and significance assessment information. Clarify the priorities for collection uses. Identify strengths, weaknesses, and gaps in existing collections to guide acquisition and disposal decisions. Identify specific implementation strategies (including linkages with the unit s other programs, opportunities for collaboration, and alternatives to traditional collecting), with target end dates, milestones, existing and required resources, and performance measures.
recommendations 284 resources finances The Office of External Affairs and unit development offices shall raise funds in the private sector for collections management. OP&A shall conduct a study of collections management-related cost recovery to include consideration of a central cost recovery policy. human resources As part of the response of the Office of Human Resources to the HumRRO report, a critical skills analysis for collections management (to include identification of critical functions, required core competencies, and staffing requirements) shall be conducted in conjunction with the units. The Smithsonian shall increase the human resources devoted to the management of collections as soon as possible. Training for collections management staff shall be aligned with the requirements of unit strategic plans, technology, professional standards, job descriptions, and assigned tasks.
recommendations 285 management long-term planning Each unit shall address collections in its strategic plan, including: Role(s) of collections Priority of collections management relative to the unit s other programs and functions Linkages and role of collections with the unit s other programs and functions Ties with other Smithsonian and external organizations, including partnerships and collaborative arrangements Performance measures for collections management. organization The Secretary shall strengthen pan-institutional support for collections management by: Expanding NCP s role as advisor to senior management on collections management matters, as well as information sharing, internal advocacy, and monitoring compliance with SD 600. NCP s monitoring role shall include assessment of unit selfevaluation reports to established goals and performance
recommendations 286 indicators, and follow-up through senior management to address identified deficiencies in collections management. Establishing the Smithsonian Collections Advisory Committee, to be led by the National Collections Coordinator, to assist senior management in establishing a framework for setting Institutional priorities and meeting collections stewardship responsibilities. accountability Consistent with the unit strategic plan, unit directors shall actively manage the development, care, and accessibility of their collections, to include short- and long-term strategies, priorities, and initiatives, and set performance measures, targets, timelines, and end dates. Priority objectives shall include: (1) aligning collections management with resources; (2) achieving compliance with SD 600, as revised to reflect minimum compliance standards; (3) addressing legacy and current problems; and (4) achieving performance goals. Each unit shall adhere to minimum Institution-wide standards of collections management required for compliance with SD 600 (including a current collections management policy, collecting plan, inventory plan, and digitization plan) and develop related performance measures. The Secretary shall ensure that collections management at all units meets professional standards and complies with SD 600 by incorporating collections-specific measurement standards into the Smithsonian strategic and annual performance plans and into the performance plans of senior management (Deputy Secretary, Under Secretaries, and directors of collecting units).